Review: MINDFREAK - Luxor Light

Talk about marketing genius. To start, in your show’s season opener, you can promote your new “home” at the Luxor Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas by levitating within its famous vertical light beam at the top of the pyramid. This, in turn, allows you promote your upcoming live show that’s being developed with Cirque du Soleil and will run at the Luxor. With Criss Angel becoming more and more well known, he shows what synergy and business savvy is all about.

After two seasons filled with numerous physical stunts, mentalism effects, close-up routines, large-scale illusions and more, it’s got to be more difficult for Angel to come up with new and compelling material. But if the opening show for season 3 is any indication, Angel and his crew of respected magic consultants are well up to the task.

In “Luxor Light,” Angel levitates himself some 500 feet above ground over the intense vertical light beam that sits atop the Luxor. Resurrecting his levitation theme once again, Angel also floats down from the 26th floor of the Luxor atrium into a crowd. More than any other prior episode, Angel talks about the inspiration he received from his father.

The “Luxor Light” levitation is impressive. The cameras on the helicopters zoom around Angel from all angles and one even pierces the light above him, seemingly leaving no explanation as to how he accomplished the feat. The show also takes pains to show footage of spectators who are reacting to the effect as well as displays their videos and pictures.

The Atrium levitation, actually it’s more of a “descent,” shows Angel slowly descending from a high balcony to the floor of the Luxor. When watching this effect, I couldn’t help think of David Copperfield’s levitation over the Grand Canyon in a televised special that aired decades ago. As I recall, Copperfield was criticized for this television trick and while I could be wrong, I think Angel took a similar approach.

In a guitar shop, Angel borrows a guitar string and proceeds to “saw” it into the flesh of his neck. It’s a bit of recently-marketed “geek” magic that is not geeky in any sense in Angel’s capable hands. Angel performs a variation with a ring and the trick can be performed impromptu as Angel is recorded doing here.

Another effect in the show that is reminiscent of one that Copperfield performed in his “Orient Express” television special, Angel covers his motorcycle with a cloth. The covered motorcycle changes shape and turns into three ladies. Angel takes great pains to show that the trick is being performed in the middle of a parking lot. It’s a great trick, but one can’t help think that post production could have played a role here.

In a well-publicized stunt with Duane “Dog” Chapman, “The Bounty Hunter,” a fellow A&E star (there’s synergy again), Angel attempts to recreate and improve on a Houdini stunt. Chapman and his team use 100-feet of rope to tie Angel to a chair. Angel is then dumped into a hot tub where he has to escape. Angel performed this feat in a prior episode, but without the water.

An impressive feat, Angel holds his breath for some 4 minutes and releases himself from his ropes so he can stand-up in the pool. However, Angel says that he didn’t free himself from the chair, and thus, has failed.

“Luxor Light” is a suitable, satisfying opener for Angel’s third season. It shows that Angel and his team are up to the task of continuing to create and perform great magic.

I’ve always felt that Angel is great for magic because he gets lay people to talk about our art. Personally, I’ll never tire of talking about Angel when people bring him up during my gigs. My only reservation concerning this episode is that I don’t recall any messages that said that there were no camera tricks. If there were, I’d certainly like to know about them.

-Wayne N. Kawamoto